THE QUAID-E-AZAM MOHAMAD ALI JINNAH’S VISION AND THE IDEOLOGY OF PAKISTAN

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan first mooted the idea of an independent Muslim nation in late nineteenth century. Subsequently Allam Sir Mohd. Iqbal in 1930 proposed the establishment of an independent Muslim state in the northwestern part of the Asian-subcontinent. However the idea of Pakistan was first propounded by Mr. Ch. Rehmat Ali in his pamphlet “Now or Never” in 1933. At that time the Muslim League Leadership including Mr. Jinnah did not support or even consider it. Up till that time Mr. Jinnah was an ardent supporter of Hindu – Muslim unity in British India. The Manchester Guardian best describes his attitude and view of that period: “Mr. Jinnah’s position at the Round Table Conference was unique. The Hindus thought he was a Muslim communalist, the Muslim took him to be pro-Hindu, the Princes deemed him to be too democratic, the British considered him an extreme nationalist, with the result that he was leader without a following.” (Page 8, M.A. Jinnah Oxford University Press 1999).